We’re likely not the first ones to tell you that the Powerball jackpot has entered big territory again. The jackpot now stands at an estimated $301 million annuity ($191.4 million cash option) for Wednesday’s drawing after growing for nearly two months without a winner. It’s currently the 14th-largest jackpot in the history of the game.
Emphasizing Powerball’s huge impact, players across the country won more than 1 million prizes ranging from $4 up to $1 million in the game’s latest drawing, even without the jackpot being hit Saturday night. Eight tickets across the country matched the first five numbers to each win a $1 million prize that night.
And that news follows Iowa’s big winners from earlier this month! We had so much fun meeting Richard and Elizabeth Martin of Pleasant Hill as they claimed their $1million Powerball prize last Monday.
So here’s how we got here: The Powerball jackpot was last won Aug. 1 with a ticket purchased in California. Powerball was last over the $300 million mark early this year. A jackpot of $564.1 million was won in the game on Feb. 11, split by three tickets in North Carolina, Texas and Puerto Rico. The game’s jackpot has been over the $100 million mark a few times since then, but this is the first time it has climbed past that to eclipse $300 million.
The current jackpot run also comes just as Powerball is about to see its latest revamp. Sales in the redesigned game will begin this coming Sunday, Oct. 4, and the first drawing with the new features will be on Wednesday, Oct. 7.
Some players have asked if redesign will impact the jackpot amount if the big prize is still climbing when the changes hit. And the answer is no. The jackpot is always based on sales in the game, so if it isn’t won before next Sunday, it will keep right on growing.
Remember that the changes coming in Powerball are designed to continue to deliver big jackpots while upping some other significant prizes in the game. Plays will still cost $2 each, and there will be better overall odds of winning any prize, a big bump up to $50,000 for the game’s third prize level, and a chance for players to multiply most winnings by up to 10 times when the jackpot is $150 million or less. Click here to see our earlier blog post with all the details about the upcoming changes.
We expect that sales will climb in the coming days as word of the big jackpot spreads. As always, we remind everyone to please play responsibly. Remember to play with your head, not over your head.
Hi, Lonnie. This is a question that we do get from time to time, but online purchasing of lottery tickets is not something that is available here in Iowa at this time. We do understand that it would be a convenience for folks, and continue to monitor that technology to see if it would be something we could implement here.
Posted by: Mary Neubauer | September 30, 2015 at 04:53 PM
Is Powerball in Hiawatha going to start selling online it would make it so much easier for me to get a ticket as I do not drive
Posted by: Lonnie Harmon | September 28, 2015 at 10:03 PM